Researchers at Microsoft have created software that can translate a user’s voice into a foreign languages, a solution with the potential to revolutionize communications, MIT’s Technology Review reported on Monday. “We will be able to do quite a few scenario applications,” said Microsoft researcher Frank Soong. “For a monolingual speaker traveling in a foreign country, we’ll do speech recognition followed by translation, followed by the final text to speech output [in] a different language, but still in his own voice.” Read on for more. More →

This… is awesome. Google on Wednesday announced a new version of its Google Translate app for Android devices. There are several changes in the new build, but one in particular has the Internet buzzing — and rightfully so. The app now features a Conversation Mode that will record speech and quickly translate it into a language of your choosing. Meaning, should you find yourself abroad, a local can speak his or her native tongue and your Android phone will translate for you in real-time. What’s more, you can speak your response in your own native language and the Google Translate app will translate your words into the target language and read them aloud to your new friend. This new version of Google Translate is available in the Android Market immediately for devices running Android 2.1 and above. And, of course, it’s free. Hit the break for a video of Googlers demonstrating the feature on stage a few months ago, and another up close and personal video demo from a user. More →

T-Mobile, in an attempt to be coy, has tweeted that G2 news is coming soon (G2newscomingsoon) in binary. The taunting tweet comes just one week before HTC is scheduled to hold a media event in London to announce new mobile products. So far, we know that the G2 will be T-Mobile’s first HSPA+ device, will run an unmodified/skinless version of Android 2.2, have Flash 10.1 support, and will pack an 800 MHz Scorpion processor. We also know that the device should retail for $199 with a 2-year contract. What we don’t know is when exactly T-Mo plans on releasing this handset into the wild. We suppose we’ll find out…”soon.” More →

Camera-happy, jet-setting, Android users should take another look at Google Goggles today. Google has added a translation feature to its Goggles application that allows you to photograph a word or phrase in a foreign language and have the application generate the appropriate translation. A prototype version of the translation feature was originally introduced at MWC 2010, however at that time it only supported German. The updated multi-language version of Goggles now supports English, French, Italian, German, and Spanish — and will eventually be expanded to include non-latin languages including Chinese, Hindi and Arabic. In addition to the updated translations, the new version also adds improved barcode recognition, an improved user interface, the ability to launch a search from within your phone’s photo gallery, and a larger database of: art work, products, and logos. The new Goggles application will set you back $0.00, is compatible with Android 1.6 or higher, and is ready for download from the Android market. More →